Jill Tracy is working on an album inspired by the collection of medical oddities at Philadelphia's Mütter Museum.

Photo: Neil Girling

Jill Tracy is working on an album inspired by the collection of...

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Musician Jill Tracy has been described as a musical sorceress, evocateur, intrigante, woman of mystery, ‘dark Queen of Melancholia,' ‘femme fatale for the thinking man.' She is currently working on an album inspired by the medical oddities at Philadelphia's Mutter Museum.

Photo: Michael Garlington

Musician Jill Tracy has been described as a musical sorceress,...

Image 3 of 4

Musician Jill Tracy has been described as a musical sorceress, evocateur, intrigante, woman of mystery, ‘dark Queen of Melancholia,' ‘femme fatale for the thinking man.' She is currently working on an album inspired by the medical oddities at Philadelphia's Mutter Museum.
SONY DSC

Photo: Neil Girling

Musician Jill Tracy has been described as a musical sorceress,...

Image 4 of 4

Musician Jill Tracy has been described as a musical sorceress, evocateur, intrigante, woman of mystery, ‘dark Queen of Melancholia,' ‘femme fatale for the thinking man.' She is currently working on an album inspired by the medical oddities at Philadelphia's Mutter Museum.
SONY DSC

Pianist, singer-songwriter and San Francisco resident Jill Tracy aspires to transport her listeners to another world - one she calls the "elegant netherworld."

Her haunting music tells the stories of the dead, from a Victorian coffin maker afraid of being buried alive to the history of slow poisoning. Her song "Evil Night Together" was featured in the trailer for the final season of the Showtime series "Dexter," and she is currently working on an album and book based on her experiences in the Mütter Museum, the country's only museum of medical oddities.

She performs Sunday at Cafe Du Nord.

Q:Was there a particular moment growing up that sparked your interest in the dark side?

A: I remember vividly when I discovered the power of music. You'd be watching "The Twilight Zone" and the sound would be off. There's a scene where a man is sitting in a diner and it's not very scary, but then you turn the sound on and with the music you suddenly got really scared. As a kid I thought, "Wow, it's the music that makes me feel a certain way." I just thought it was magical. I still do. I wanted to devote my life to creating these other worlds. I now call it the "elegant netherworld."

Q:Where did that term come from and why does it capture what you do?

A: Netherworld to me is romantic, it's mysterious, and it's intriguing - but not scary. I find a real beauty and romance in the dark side. I don't feel my work is off-putting or scary. I really want to bring the audience in and have them be a part of it. There's a lure and a romance in the shadows.

Q:What are you currently working on?

A: I was given a grant - the first musician to ever be given a grant by the Mütter Museum - to do a whole album of music based on the collection. You realize that these are all people, all souls in here. Another big part was to not only write about these souls but to be with them as I wrote about them. After 5, when the museum closed, I would set up in that little corner. I was nervous so I would talk to everyone, I'd say, "All right, everyone, I'm going to play something for you." I want to give back to them to honor their stories.

Q:Do you base all your work on stories?

A: I'm inspired by the story. I'm inspired by the emotional aspect of how the stories make me feel. Every song of mine has a very personal aspect. I think you find a universal thing in everything you are telling. Like (Siamese twins) Chang and Eng - if you can imagine a conjoined twin, and one dies and one wakes up in the middle of the night and his conjoined twin is dead, it's that fear of being alone. The theme is the fear and sadness and feeling helpless and mortality. Similar things resonate with everyone.